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Awards

2017 MAC Coach of the Year 

2018 MAC Coach of the Year

2019 MAC Coach of the Year

Entering his fisth season in 2024, Matt Fannon has proven he can build a winning program in Ames. After being hired on Dec. 17 of 2019, the Cyclones have shown remarkable progress under Fannon's guidance. The Cyclones finished the 2021 season with the most wins since 2016 and ended the season by taking #8 TCU to PK's. In 2022, Iowa State recorded its first win over a ranked opponent since 2016 and its first victory over in-state rival Iowa since 2018. ISU's momentum continued into 2023 as Fannon's squad earned its most conference wins since 2007.

Iowa State's 2023 season featured the first of an expanded Big 12 as the Cyclones finished the season strong, beating two of their final three opponents. ISU finished with six wins, the most under Coach Fannon and the program's most since 2016. The team also scored 19 goals which is the most since the 2014 team converted 21 scores.

The 2022 season also marked the first season in Ames that Fannon was able to recruit the incoming freshman and transfer class in-person and play a full schedule. Fannon’s 2022 squad dropped just ten games, which, other than the COVID-shortened season, was the fewest since 2016.

In 2020, the Cyclones battled perhaps the toughest schedule the Cyclones had ever faced. Iowa State played four opponents ranked in the top 15 nationally by the United Soccer Coaches poll - the most in program history. The team ending the 2020-21 season on a five-match unbeaten streak - the program’s longest since 2010. 

Prior to Iowa State, Fannon was the three-time reigning Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year when he was named the sixth Head Women’s Soccer Coach in Iowa State history.

Fannon guided Bowling Green State to a 41-18-7 mark (26-6-1 in the MAC) in his three seasons there, winning league Coach-of-the-Year honors each season. He won more games at BGSU than the school won in the eight prior years combined. In his rookie season, the Falcons won 13 games, the second-most in school history. He tied the university’s season win mark (14) his final two years.

Bowling Green won both the MAC regular-season and tournament championships in 2018 and 2019. The Falcons advanced to the NCAA Championship in both of those campaigns.

Fannon’s teams have adopted an aggressive, attacking style throughout his career which leads to many scoring opportunities as well as limiting scoring chances for the opponent.

The 2017 team scored 43 goals, and the 2019 team scored 46 to rank as the two highest-scoring seasons in school history. The 2018 squad had the second-best defensive scoring average in Bowling Green annals.

In 2018, BGSU dropped an early season match to 15th-ranked Northwestern and then went on to play the next 1,008 minutes (nearly 17 hours of match time) without trailing. Fannon’s 2018 team led the MAC in goals scored as well as fewest goals allowed.

The 2019 Falcons again led the conference in scoring offense and defense. BGSU was the only school to average more than two goals per league game (2.545) and was one of two schools to allow fewer than a goal per game (0.73). Falcon student-athletes took home MAC Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2017, 2018 and 2019, as well as MAC Defensive Player of the Year recognition in 2018 and 2019.

Off the pitch, BGSU had record numbers of MAC academic honorees and had four MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athletes in his first two seasons at the helm. BGSU also had one CoSIDA Academic All-American, a Senior CLASS All-American and maintained a team GPA above 3.5 during his tenure.

Fannon, a native of York, England, has made a rapid climb on the college coaching ladder. He was an assistant at Regis University and the University of Wyoming before assuming the head coaching responsibilities at Wittenberg (2013-16) and Bowling Green State (2017-19).

In his four seasons as head coach, the Tigers were 40-26-10. Wittenberg made the NCAA Division III Tournament his final year. He was named NCAC Coach of the Year that season.

Fannon has his NSCAA Premier diploma and earned his Football Association Coaching Certificate in England. He also has a United States Soccer Federation Goalkeeping License.

Fannon earned his B.S. degree in physical education from Davis and Elkins College (2008) and added a Master’s degree in Soccer Coaching Education from Ohio University (2015).

He was a two-time first-team all-region and first-team all-conference player for the Senators. Fannon also played a year at Dutchess Community College before attending Davis and Elkins.

Fannon and his wife, Julie, have two daughters: Rowen and Mason.

Matt Fannon Year-by-year

At Wittenberg

YEAR       OVERALL           NCAC      Finish             NCAC Tournament     NCAA Championship

2013             9-7-5                5-1-2         T1st                 Advanced to finals                     ---

2014             8-8-1                4-4-0          4th                  Advanced to semis                    ---

2015            10-6-2               5-2-1          3rd                  Advanced to semis                    ---

2016            13-5-2               7-1-0          2nd                  Advanced to finals              First Round

Totals        40-26-10            21-8-3

At Bowling Green State

YEAR       OVERALL            MAC   Finish                 MAC Tournament.        NCAA CHAMP.

2017            13-7-1               6-4-1      2nd                     Advanced to finals                 ---

2018            14-5-3              10-1-0     1st                            Champions               First Round

2019            14-6-3              10-1-0     1st                            Champions               First Round

Totals         41-18-7             26-6-1

At Iowa State

YEAR        OVERALL        Big 12            Finish                 Big 12 Tournament.                 NCAA CHAMP.

2020-21         3-6-4              2-6-1               9th                    Canceled (COVID-19)                          ---

2021              5-11-1            2-6-0               8th            T, 0-0 TCU Advances on PK's, 3-2               ---

2022              3-10-4            0-7-2              10th                                ---                                             ---

2023              6-11-1            3-7-0              11th                                 ---                                            ---

Totals           17-38-10        7-26-3